The Rose That Grew from Concrete

I know of a man who struggled with manic depression and was plagued with poverty throughout his life. Due to his financial struggles, he was obliged to abandon his school and immediately start going to work. However, his love for art continued to flourish, leading him to learn about brush stroke techniques, the right choices of colour, and other designs, all by himself. In 1889, he mutilated a part of his ear; this got him sent to a mental asylum at Saint-Remy, France, where he painted Starry Night, Irises, and Sunflowers from his room which had only a window. Making some improvements health-wise, he was permitted to paint in the fields nearby, where another episode eventuated. During this, he ate some of his oil paints.

Throughout his stay at the asylum, he produced over 900 paintings, each manifesting his phenomenal brushwork, exuberant palette, and mastery at encapsulating scenes in time and revolutionizing art, doing all of this as a self-taught artist. Unfortunately, none of his paintings came to light until after his death – owing to suicide.

This man, presently acclaimed as Vincent van Gogh, is one of the most influential artists in history. Only recognized at the end of his life, Vincent van Gogh left behind a mammoth multitude of works in which he elevated mediocre everyday life with rich strokes of proficiency. One of the multiple things about Van Gogh that resonates with many people is how he suffered from a looming cloud of mental illnesses and depression yet still believed in himself and his sensational expertise.

One of the most underemphasized paintings of Van Gogh is Prisoners Exercising,

which depicts inmates trudging steadily in what seems to be an endless circle. An endless circle of life’s miseries and afflictions. An endless circle of vexation and madness. An endless circle of one’s self-destructive thoughts and the fathomless walls that constrain one from escaping those conceptions. The painting portrays Vincent’s resentment towards how impotent and futile he felt in the asylum, knowing very well that he could be part of the bigger picture and not be a minute trivial detail at the corner of the page. This painting speaks volumes about the feelings of not only Vincent himself but also about the mass majority of the people residing on this planet. Vincent felt like a prisoner in his mind. A prisoner bound to chains made up of whispers that devalued himself and were not letting him free, leading him to fall into the deep cavity of depression. Nonetheless, believing in himself and in his potential was the prime source of the vigour that prevented him from staying there for long. He eventually conquered the art industry, consequently paving the way for many other artists.

A poem named “The Rose That Grew from Concrete,” written by Tupac Shakur, accentuated the same idea. It goes as such:

“Did you hear about the rose that grew

from a crack in the concrete?

Proving nature’s law is wrong, it

learned to walk without having feet.

Funny it seems, but by keeping its dreams,

it learned to breathe fresh air.

Long live the rose that grew from concrete

when no one else ever cared.”

Concrete is utilized in the construction of buildings; therefore, it cannot be demolished easily. In general terms, concrete symbolizes the hurdles and obstacles faced by people in their lives. Meanwhile, the crack demonstrates the opportunity that is obtainable to an abundance of people out there, easy to attain for some, while for others it is quite difficult to grasp. The rose growing from a crack in the concrete is something which is considered to be “impossible” as it can only live by possessing its basic necessities. Conversely, the rose in the poem defied the primary principles of nature and still survived due to its extreme determination. Similarly, a person who not only prioritizes his dreams but also endeavours will eventually get to breathe in the pleasant smell of petrichor after the thunderstorms he overcame. In all, this understandable poem is a true reflection of life.

The theme covered in all the pieces of art mentioned previously is about having goals and reaching them in life despite hindrances, and being hopeful and working diligently to accomplish one’s aims. A simple yet evocative depiction of hope’s ability to permit people to survive despite the circumstances that would originally stifle them.